Introduction
Name: Mai Shiranui
Height: 165cm (5'5")
Weight: 48kg (106 lbs)
Family/Known Acquaintances: Hanzo Shiranui (grandfather), Andy Bogard (self-proclaimed fiancé)
Occupation: Ninja
Measurements: 87/55/91cm (34/22/36)
Fighting Style Shiranui-ryuu ninjutsu
Notation
Buttons
A C CH
B D
or
LP SP CH
LK SK
Abbreviations
QCF - Quarter Circle Forward
QCB - Quarter Circle Back
HCF - Half Circle Forward
HCB - Half Circle Back
DP/SRK- F,D,DF
Normal Moves
- Taken from Mai Primer 2 by Purify, see below in Advanced Strategy
A: Far is a poke. It doesn't combo into anything. Close is fast, combos into slide (df+C) for level 1 B&B. Crouching is a crouching version of standing A in function. Jump A is largely just...there. Jump down+A is her only air normal that combos into dive, which means a level 2 combo.
B: Far is similar to a Kyo far B. Close looks low, but isn't. Combos into slide like close A. Crouch is a low. cr.B > roll > level 2 B&B is really good, but difficult. Jump B is a knee with limited uses. Jump down+B hits once if higher up, twice if executed on top of their sprite. May cross up. May even hit with the first hit on one side and the second on the other, I swear. Crazy, but low damage and more recovery than down+D (butt dive). Forward+B is an interesting normal. Two hits, launches, can combo after with D Assault or punch super to butt dives (corner). This normal can avoid low pokes, and if combo'd into, acts as a forward+D. Df+B is the slide. Done alone, it hits low and knocks down. Very similar to Ky's stun dipper, actually. Part of the level 1 B&B, as if it is combo'd into, you may cancel after the first to a special (qcb C if you have meter, qcb B if you don't, because the latter knocks down). There are a lot of freaking moves with B.
C: Far is a fan slap, can be anti air, somewhat fast. Close is a level 2 B&B staple, as well as crouching. Also fast. With down+A and jump D, jump C's only merit is hitting in the area above Mai where jump D wouldn't.
D: Far is an anti air move, somewhat like Cammy's far RH or something. She backs away and makes the upper part of her sprite a hitbox. Close D does not combo into anything, unfortunately, but seems faster than close C to me. Crouch D is Mai's sweep, which is SPECIAL CANCELABLE. DG was talking about AB stepping after this, which you don't have to do. Forward+B/D counts as a special, and forward+D cancels into level 2 on whiff. So, the combo is just:
Sweep > forward D > level 2. Fast.
Jump D is main air to air. It's good. Jump down+D is the infamous ass dive. Small characters can dodge it with a crouch. Crosses up easily. Very fast overhead, can be done ridiculously close to the ground. In NGBC2 it will combo into dive and everyone will DIE. Forward D has a lot of range, but it's slow. You are considered airborne during this, so all air attack rules apply, including level 2 on whiff OR hit. A staple in old level 2 B&B, the combo I learned after like ten seconds in training with this game.
Body Toss
Fuusha Kuzushi
- (When Close)Back/Neutral/Forward + CD
- Basic throw. The one where Mai grabs the opponent's head between her feet and slams the opponent to the other side.
Yume Sakura
- (When Close In Air)CD
- Mai's air throw. I haven't actually connected with this move, but I'm assuming it's the same as in the previous KOF games.
Command Moves
Benitsuru no Mai
- Down-Forward + B
- Mai slides along the floor and then sweeps the opponent with her other foot. Hits low, but you already knew that. Like in previous KOF games, she can cancel into other moves after the first hit.
Tsubaki no Mai
- Forward + B/D
- Mai does a drop kick with both feet, similar to her CD attack in previous KOF games. f+ B is identical to her previous CD attack, while f+ D makes her hop forward while doing the drop kick.
Dairin Fuusha Otoshi
- (In Air)Down + A
- Mai does a downward hammerfist with both hands.
Uki Hane
- (In Air)Down + B
- Mai does a small hop in mid-air and floats straight down, smashing the opponent with her knee. As in previous KOF games, this move is an overhead. Nice as a confusion tactic or as a cross-up move.
Yusura Ume
- (In Air)Down + D
- Mai floats down with her butt sticking out, knocking the opponent down. As in previous KOF games, this move is an overhead.
Sankaku Tobi
- (In Air)Up-Forward when next to a wall
Special Moves
Kachou Sen
- Quarter Circle Forward + A/C
- Mai throws a fan at the opponent. You already knew that.
Ryuu Enbu
- Quarter Circle Back + A/C
- Mai spins while whipping her flaming tailcloths. You already knew that, too.
Sayo Chidori
- Quarter Circle Back + B/D
- Mai swings her fan downward in a wide arc. I don't know if this move can cancel into any other moves like in some previous KOF games.
Hissatsu Shinobi Bachi
- Half Circle Forward + B/D
- Mai does a cartwheel and charges at the opponent with her elbow sticking out. Once again, you already knew that.
Musasabi no Mai - Kyo
- Charge Down, Up + A/C
- Mai jumps to the wall and then jumps off of it. You should tap the A or C button when performing this move, since pressing it too long will make her do the Musasabi no Mai - Jitsu. In mid-air, you can perform the Dairin Fuusha Otoshi, the Uki Hane, the Yusura Ume, or the Toki Tsubute. You can also do the Musasabi no Mai - Jitsu by inputting qcb+ A/C.
Musasabi no Mai - Jitsu
- Charge Down, Up + A/C(hold A/C, or press A/C when Mai reaches the wall) or mid-air Quarter Circle Back + A/C
- If performed in mid-air, Mai flies quickly downward at an angle. If performed on the ground, Mai jumps to the wall and then flies quickly downward at an angle. Same stuff as in previous KOF games.
Toki Tsubute
- (during Musasabi no Mai - Kyo) CD
- The opponent would have to be in mid-air and you'd have to be close to him/her when you attempt this move.
Desperation Moves
Chou Hissatsu Shinobi Bachi
- Quarter Circle Back, Half Circle Forward + B/D
- Despite what some of the Japanese movelists say, you cannot perform this super with the A or C button. As you know, Mai does a more powerful version of her Hissatsu Shinobi Bachi. It's the same as Mai's usual DM in previous KOF games, so use it as such. This move consumes 1 Super Bar.
Kagerou no Mai
- Double Quarter Circle Forward + A/C
- Mai summons a column of flame that temporarily surrounds her. I believe it's possible to juggle the opponent afterwards if this move connects. This move consumes 1 Super Bar.
Gekka Midare Botan
- (In Air)Double Quarter Circle Forward + A/C
- Well, this move is new. Mai flies downward like in Musasabi no Mai - Jitsu. If this move connects, she then mounts the opponent's head, as what appear to be ghostlike illusions of Mai rip through the opponent at rapid speed. After that, a huge explosion occurs as Mai jumps off the opponent. One of my favorite supers so far. Use this move like you would use Leona's V-Slasher. This move consumes 2 Super Bars
The Basics
Mai NGBC Primer Part I (by Dark Geese)
-Mai has always been basic..but in this game she has some pluses and minuses. More pluses hence why she is up in the tiers. -Just like in KOFs- the most little used poke with Mai is far. St a. Its good to space. - Use her butt bounce (Down+D) move. Its an overhead and her Ultimage Juggle. -Basic DG Mai mixup: (Low)SweepxxBRC to jump Cancel down+D, or aerial Down+D (Overhead) -BRC or what I call Blue Rush Cancel costs meter..but its essential for Mai. - Aerial Down+D is non-meter safe but can be punished via GCFS. -On wakeup use her down+B move..its EXCELLENT ALSO because it crosses up on wakeup. Experiment with it to see what I am talking about!!! Make an ambiguous crossup -This move is not as good as it is in 2k2..where you can even make it an ambiguous crossup and mix it up with her flying grab..but its still good. -Your goal with Mai to to land the Level 2 Aerial Super as it does good damage… -Anti Air with Mai is her qcfx k super (level 1) -In the corner if you land her qcfx2 k super if you time it right you can link 3 Aerial Down+D’s right after each other. Tight timing though.
-BNBs-
- 1:The Purifyweirdsoul BNB- After a Sweep, BRC (AB Roll) into jump cancel then into Level 2 aerial P Super (qcfx2 C). Difficult to hit confirm at first, but its possible because of the steps.
-#2- St.C to Df+B (one hit) to hcb+pxDeadly Ninja Bees (qcbhcf+p)
- 3- St. C to Forward+B to qcb+a to qcfx2 C Aerial Level 2 Super. Hit confirm this always or you are wide open after the missed forward+b.
Advanced Strategy
Mai Primer 2 (by Purify)
Okay, specials:
Slow fan, fast fan. An okay projectile. Nothing special, but it does what it should. Slow fan has more recovery. STUPID: you can combo into level 2 after slow fan. Yes, seriously.
Flame spin (qcb+A/C). Flame advantage lol. Can be combo'd into, C is supercancelable. Used for level 1 B&B. Can be used for pressure in the corner, eating projectiles, lots of things. It's fun to spin!
Fan swing (qcb+B/D). Not quite as useful as the flame spin, but can be used for anti air and B version for meterless combos off of close A/close B. Pretty long active frames on D version. She makes an annoying sound when she does it. HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEe. Has a super cancel for NO REASON.
Vega jump (charge move, down then up). Mai jumps backward for the wall, and then hops off unless you held a punch, in which case she'll come back down soon after leaving the ground with a dive. After she jumps back off of the wall, you can do any of your air moves or airthrow. The US command list says you can do an air throw after a dive, but it's full of shit.
Dive. (qcb+A/C in the air). You've heard me mention this a few times, it's part of her high damage level 2 B&B. A good move in its own right, and the move is safe unless AB stepped, in which case you cancel to level 2 anyway like an awesome scrub (me) and they (Geese) get hit by it. If you see the roll and can super on reaction, this is what you'd do anyway.
DEADLY NINJA BEES. This move is terrible.
supers:
Level 1s: Flame super with the punch putton (qcf x2), I believe DG said this was with a kick earlier, silly goose. It's basically a launcher/anti-air super. It'll talk about its combos later. If the move has enough time to animate, flames will come out even if you're hit.
Flame kick super. A serious version of NINJA BEES, basically. Unsafe if blocked, but okay for chip damage or guard crush if they're low on those meters.
Level 2: Big damage dive super. Mai dances around the screen and makes your head explode. It hurts. A version hits at a sharper angle, which is better to use on its own/against people below you trying to anti air with normals and shit. C version is used more in combos. In most situations, you can actually do either, but C is easier to hit (if done late, A version will whiff).
Okay, combos:
Meterless: Close A/close B > df+B (slide) > qcb+B. Knocks down. Close C/cr.C > above. Close C/cr.C > forward B/D > dive.
Level 1: Close C or cr.C > df+B cancel on first hit to qcb+C > level 1 super. If you hit the super at the right time, you can hit with Mai -and- the flame for a little more damage. Close A or B > same thing as above.
Level 2: Close C or cr.C > forward+B/D > dive > level 2 super. TK dive > super (yeah, it works, don't go for it too close to the ground since you'll instead land and get a punch flame super) Jump down+A > dive > super. Dive > super itself. Forward D > super itself. Super itself. Taunt > TK super. Just cause. Punch flame super > TK level 2 super. All your meter for terrible damage! However, if it will kill, hell yeah do it. Oh, and I mentioned the cr.B > AB roll > close C > level 2 B&B stuff above.
Punch flame super combos: There's a semi-infinite off of the flame super in the corner. It goes like this, basically:
A version flame super > TK butt dive xN. It's not easy. I've gotten five at most. No idea how many are possible, haven't seen it in a video.
They float higher and the combo is made easier if you do 6B > cancel on first hit to flame super > start butt dives. It's funny with this, 'cause, it's possible to do the TK butt dive TOO fast and whiff. So yeah, you give yourself a little more time/height to do the combo. If you get a few hits of this, it's really respectable damage for a level 1, for sure. Not the most practical thing ever, though. If you hit a flame super midscreen, hit them with a butt dive to combo or the other super like I said above. I guess this is some kind of "Mai's hot ass" innuendo or something? Who knows.